Mixed Methods Research
Research that combines quantitative and qualitative approaches in one study so their strengths offset each other's limitations.
Mixed methods research collects and integrates both numeric and qualitative data to answer questions neither could address alone. Common designs include explanatory sequential, where a survey comes first and interviews explain the numbers; exploratory sequential, where interviews come first and inform an instrument; and convergent, where both strands run at once and are compared. The defining feature is genuine integration, with the two strands informing each other rather than sitting in separate chapters.
In a thesis, mixed methods can be powerful but doubles the methodological workload: each strand must meet its own quality standards, and the integration must be shown, not asserted. Name the specific design, justify the sequence, and explain where integration happens. Examiners quickly notice a mixed study that is really two disconnected mini-studies.
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